Chapter 379

Chapter 379: Hello, Major

After a few months, Lin Mo noticed that Captain Feng had a bit more gray hair. Every time he commanded a mission, he treated his subordinates’ lives as mere pieces on a chessboard, bearing immense pressure.

The unwavering trust from his subordinates, the worries of his family, and the hopes placed upon him by his superiors filled Lin Mo with respect for Captain Feng. Most Dragon Knights were lone fighters who could only look out for themselves, and he truly understood the enormous pressure that came with having so many lives depending on one person.

"Take this! You earned it."

Captain Feng pulled out a medium-sized brown paper envelope and pushed it toward Lin Mo, smiling brightly at the only jet fighter pilot in his Special Forces team. Despite the endless troubles that came with it, could someone who didn’t cause trouble still be called a king of soldiers?

With risks come opportunities; the greater the troubles, the greater the rewards.

When Lin Mo was transferred from Team 7759, the intent was merely to provide air support for ground troop attacks, compensating for the shortcomings in aerial assault and maneuverability within the Aircrew Group.

But no one expected this pilot, with fewer than 200 flight hours, to grow at an astonishing rate into an ace pilot with impressive battle achievements, as if he were born to fly and live for combat.

In training, he had been unremarkable, but on the battlefield, he transformed completely, appearing more like a seasoned veteran than a novice.

Lin Mo shattered many people’s expectations and far surpassed the surprises he brought to everyone.

Not only did Captain Feng feel delighted, but the morale of the battalion also soared.

The leaders of Team 7759 might have felt annoyed, knowing they had let slip a potential ace pilot who could have earned them honors that now belonged to someone else.

Great heroes emerge in turbulent times; only real combat can filter out true elites.

Lin Mo accepted the brown paper envelope but treated it like an ordinary item, preparing to salute and turn away. However, he noticed Captain Feng watching him with a curious smile and said, "Aren’t you going to open it?"

Was there something good inside?

Upon hearing Captain Feng’s hint, Lin Mo realized it was meant to be a surprise, but he hadn’t thought that he would be so calm, holding it without even the interest to glance inside.

"Yes, Captain!"

Lin Mo solemnly uncoiled the envelope’s seal, reached inside, and pulled out its contents, laying them on the table.

A few insignias of the rank of Major, two first-class military medals, several certificates of honor, a red-headed document, and dozens of photos.

The military medals came with two of the honor certificates; one was for an operation in Afghanistan, while the other was awarded by the South China Sea Fleet for capturing the Hampton nuclear submarine.

Each document recorded Lin Mo’s achievements: the one from Afghanistan directly provided the Chinese military with a stronghold overseas, as local connections were fully established. The military just needed to plant their flag.

The action in the South China Sea was even bolder; he almost dropped a sonar buoy onto an enemy submarine, narrowly avoiding a nasty encounter with the American captain. He even cheekily photographed himself landing on Nanning Island, poking fun at the stationed Vietnamese troops, capturing evidence of his landing for posterity.

Indeed, the South China Sea Fleet sent over images taken from the on-board cameras, and the Night Special Forces had processed high-resolution photos for Lin Mo to keep as mementos. Just looking at his pose made it clear what he had in mind; a heap of fallen Vietnamese soldiers stood as mere backdrops, providing bright red flowers against a sea of green uniforms.

These photos were meant for internal circulation within the Chinese military. For those who didn’t know the truth, most of the faces in the photos were obscured, but they learned about a bold ace pilot daring enough to land an aircraft with a full company of soldiers. If they let him fly a transport plane, taking Nanning Island would be child’s play.

If the Vietnamese saw this, they would be furious, as if one Buddha had descended, another had ascended to heaven, and three corpses were jumping in anger, cursed at this troublesome Chinese pilot who dared to land while playing around with a digital camera.

A few certificates also documented Lin Mo meeting with Russian intelligence personnel, reporting on the British unmanned combat aircraft "Falcon" and damaging an American RC-135 strategic reconnaissance aircraft.

Indeed, every little thing Lin Mo had done was noted by the superiors with careful attention.

The red-headed document specified a special monetary award of five million yuan from the superiors, all earned with Lin Mo’s blood and sweat.

When it comes to meritorious heroes, the higher-ups are not stingy in their rewards; otherwise, how could they inspire the soldiers to fight hard?

The two first-class honors and other achievements catapulted Lin Mo to the rank of Major, completely surpassing his expectations and possibly surprising many others.

As long as he could survive, the rate of promotion in frontline combat units left other troops envious.

Lin Mo’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the items on the table. One by one, he picked them up, examining each carefully, his smile growing wider, filled with joy. This was indeed a great surprise.

These were proofs of glory, badges of honor for a soldier. Achievements were the best demonstration of a Dragon Knight’s worth.

Lin Mo stood at attention and saluted Captain Feng, expressing his gratitude loudly, "Thank you for your support, Leader! This is what I should do for my country and its people!"

He knew when to be humble and when to accept recognition without reserve; he deserved this recognition, and it felt right.

However, Lin Mo was also fully aware that without the country’s significant investment in advanced combat equipment, it would have been impossible for him to earn these honors. Just cutting with the Dragon Slayer sword would wear his hands out.

"Ha ha! Keep up the good work!"

Captain Feng picked up the shoulder insignia for the rank of Major from the table and personally replaced Lin Mo’s Captain insignia. At that moment, Lin Mo officially entered the ranks of officer.

Like the captains and leaders of other combat squadrons, he became a member of the solid mid-level officer team within the Special Forces.

"Thank you, Captain!"

Lin Mo’s voice was strong as he saluted again.

Colonel Feng Chenye, commander of the Night Special Forces, patted Lin Mo on the shoulder kindly and said, "Go on, report to Old Pan. He has another big gift for you. Keep working hard for your country and its people."

"Yes!"

Lin Mo quickly gathered his things and stuffed them back into the brown paper bag, saluting Captain Feng for the fourth time before swiftly leaving.

On the way, the driver, Old Hu, mentioned that the Aircrew Group had prepared a big surprise for Lin Mo. Given what he had just received from Captain Feng, it was clear that this surprise was something different.

Lin Mo felt a great sense of anticipation.

After watching the elite ace pilot Lin Mo leave with excitement, Colonel Feng Chenye returned to his seat and picked up the phone, dialing a series of numbers.

"Hello, Colonel Ma? … Yes, this is Feng Chenye … I’m looking for some work from you … Ha ha, I’m not trying to steal your ground missions …"

"… I’m looking for work for my pilots, so don’t be jealous; you filed a report too, didn’t you? But we need a venue, maintenance personnel, and equipment. Fighter jets are hard to maintain. Don’t I happen to have some resources available? Although it’s a bit rudimentary, it can still function … I don’t have many connections; the last time I borrowed from someone else was just luck, and it won’t be as easy this time. You can loan some personnel; there is an air division nearby, and you can use their help, but don’t forget to reserve some air support tasks for me …"

"… Yes, yes, you’re right. Good marksmen need to be fed with bullets, and great ace pilots are honed through actual combat. If we weren’t a combat unit, how would we have so many battle missions for our pilots to practice? If you have good tasks that need air fire support, just let me know. My pilots need real combat experience, and of course, I want to see how far this kid can go. If this kid has talent, we must cultivate it. We can’t let him sit idle at home, that’s a waste, right? Even air-to-ground missions are better than nothing … Okay, it’s settled then. Don’t forget!"

Captain Feng hung up the phone, satisfied. The combat capability of ground troops had hit a bottleneck. To advance further, more advanced equipment was required. With Lin Mo as an ace pilot, they could dominate both the ground and air.

In practice, ordinary pilots could hardly match Lin Mo. Whenever his fighter appeared in the sky, it represented absolute air superiority; even standard anti-air missiles struggled to take him down, not even the domestically produced Pioneer-4.

One person, one fighter jet, could almost serve the role of an entire air squadron. This was the power of an ace pilot, one of the great weapons of the Night Special Forces. Even if others were willing to trade a hundred kings of soldiers for him, Captain Feng would probably not agree.

Captain Feng continued dialing several more numbers, speaking content similar to his previous calls.

These calls were directed at several nearby units responsible for security tasks around the Night Special Forces. They might not be as busy as the Special Forces, which focused on external threats, but when they moved, they made a significant impact.

For example, when they once ambushed the anti-government forces trying to infiltrate from neighboring countries, the presence of these regular troops formed a strong steel wall protecting the nation’s borders, ensuring that not even a fly could get through.